Soulmates
by Lady Emily
Summary: Donna gives a discouraged Jackie a relationship pep talk. [One shot. DE]


A/N: Just a short, sweet little E/D one shot with no plot and only the tiniest hint of a point. Hope you like!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from That 70s Show.

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"Mm... Eric!" Donna Pinciotti giggled, sprawled out on her bed with her boyfriend on top of her.

Eric raked his fingers through her long red hair, smiling against her mouth. "Hm?"

There was a soft knock on the bedroom door and it cracked open, revealing a disheartened-looking Jackie Burkhart. "Donna?"

The lovers separated and Donna sat up on the bed, hurriedly tidying herself up. "Jackie? Did you just... knock?" she asked in confusion.

"Jackie?" Eric spoke up, keeping his voice light but his meaning clear. "We're busy here?"

"I know... sorry." Jackie began. "But I need to talk to Donna."

"Jackie? Go away?" Eric persisted.

Donna smacked her boyfriend in the stomach with the back of her hand. "Eric!" she hissed. "Jackie knocked... she said sorry... something's very wrong!"

Eric looked from Donna to Jackie in frustration. "Does this mean I have to-?"

"Yes." Both girls said in unison.

"Fine." Eric grumbled. He got off the bed and made to leave, turning around at the last second to tell Donna, "We will finish _this_, later."

Donna grinned and waved him off, and he shut the door behind him.

Jackie went to sit on the end of the bed. "Donna..." she whined.

"Problems with Hyde?" Donna guessed, looking forward to getting this business with Jackie over with so she could go find Eric again.

"Yes!" Jackie exploded. "I don't know what I'm going to do! This isn't working!"

"Why not?" Donna asked. "What happened this time?"

"Oh, we got in another fight... If he wasn't so stubborn and paranoid and... _scruffy_, I wouldn't have to boss him around so much! It's not my fault!"

"Jackie... calm down." Donna soothed. Looking closely, she noticed that Jackie's mascara was smeared... "Are you... crying?"

The little brunette wiped at her eyes. "No..." she sniffed.

"Liar." Donna said fondly, pulling her in for a hug. As annoying as Jackie was, the girl had grown on her, and Donna didn't like to see her cry.

Jackie rested her head on Donna's shoulder. "I... need your help." she said quickly, as if she were only half-hoping Donna would hear her.

Donna's eyebrows. "You... need my help?" she repeated, a grin forming on her lips. "You need my help?" This sounded like something she could rub in Jackie's face at a later date.

"Don-na!" Jackie pouted. "Are you gonna be nice to me or not?" Pulling away from Donna's shoulder, she fell back on her old standby snobbishness, pinching at the plaid fabric of Donna's shirt. "You know, it's super hard to ask you for help when you clearly need so much of mine!"

Donna slapped Jackie's hand away from her shirt. "Okay, enough of the cheap shots at my clothes." she groaned. "You want to tell me exactly what you want?"

Jackie sighed. "I want... what you and Eric have."

Donna smiled triumphantly. "Who doesn't?"

"No, Donna..." Jackie said. "I want mine and Steven's relationship to be like yours."

"I think Hyde would die first-" Donna began, hiding a grin.

Jackie glared at her. "No, I meant that... well, you and Eric have, like, the perfect relationship. In a creepy, almost unnatural way, I mean. How do you _do_ it?"

Donna smiled dreamily. "Yeah, we are pretty perfect." she shook her head quickly, as if to clear it, and focused back on Jackie. "But it's not because of what we do or don't do."

"What do you mean?" Jackie asked, drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on them.

Donna squinted, trying to in the words. "Think about it." she said. "Eric does stupid things that I don't like all the time, and I do things he doesn't like. We're not together because of what we do, it's because of who we are."

"Spell it out for me, Donna." Jackie said impatiently.

"We love each other." Donna shrugged.

"Well, Steven and I love each other..." Jackie said.

Donna laughed. "No you don't. You and Hyde are a pair of horny teenagers who just happen to live in a convenient proximity to each other."

Jackie looked hurt. "That's not true!"

Donna frowned and took her friend's hand. "C'mon, Jackie." she said. "Think about it. You're looking for love, and sometimes when you're looking for something too hard you just can't find it."

"You and Eric are horny teenagers who just happen to live next door to each other!" Jackie said, going on the offensive.

"Fine." Donna said. "But the difference between me and Eric and you and Hyde is that Eric and I like each other for more than our bodies. We talk to each other. We listen to each other. And we like it that way... we don't try to change each other. You and Hyde can barely stand to hear each other talk!" she patted Jackie's hand. "The kind of relationship you guys have is fine. But it's not love."

Jackie's nostrils flared and she stared out into the distance. "Oh my god, Donna. What if you're right? What if I never find love?"

Donna elbowed her gently to bring her back from her reverie. "You will, Jackie. Just don't try too hard. If you feel like you have to change someone to be able to love them... well, that's not good."

Jackie looked so depressed that Donna hugged her again.

"You and Eric..." Jackie moaned into her shoulder. "You guys found each other right away... That's just lucky... If you're the skinny geek-boy type of girl, that is."

"And I am." Donna finished, a self-satisfied smile dancing on her lips.

Jackie tilted her head up to look at the taller redhead. "Do you really think I'll find my soulmate someday?"

Donna nodded. "You will. I promise." she grinned and gave Jackie a little punch on the shoulder. "Just make sure to keep your paws off mine!"

Jackie gagged. "Ew- like you have to ask!" Donna laughed and threw a pillow at her back as she headed for the door. Jackie picked it up and turned around, tossing it back. "Donna... thanks."

"You're welcome, Jackie." Then she was gone and Donna was sitting on her bed alone. A soft knock on the door frame made her look up. Eric was standing in the doorway, leaning against the jamb.

"Your skinny geek-boy has arrived..."

Donna laughed. "Thank god."

Eric crossed the room quickly and pounced on her, and they grappled, laughing, for a while before Donna had him pinned, as she inevitably did. "So... do you really think we're soulmates?" Eric asked her seriously, his eyes meeting her gaze.

Donna quirked an eyebrow at the boy she loved, lying motionless under her, his stare flicking from her eyes to her mouth.

"Don't you?"

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A/N: Lol, I can already feel the cold stares of a hundred Jackie/Hyde shippers boring into me at this very moment. But, I figure, this site is full of pages that explore the J/H relationship, plus it just feels so good to go against the Hyde/Jackie grain...

Anyway, thanks for reading. Let me know what you thought in a review!


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